Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone believes Ferrari need to find a way to improve their car otherwise Fernando Alonso could lose interest in trying to win.
The Spaniard twice claimed the Drivers’ Championship with Renault and was widely expected to add to his tally when he joined the Scuderia in 2010.
However, he has so far failed to make it a hat-trick, coming home second in the standings behind Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel in three out of the last four years.
Despite his lack of success, Alonso’s reputation as one of the most talented drivers in the sport has only improved, with him regularly using his tactical nous to outmanoeuvre his rivals but his enthusiasm appeared to have started to wane in the second half of 2013 following a string of technical issues.
The 32-year-old has recently hinted at his unhappiness at his sluggish car and his situation is set to get more complicated next year when Kimi Raikkonen joins him at Maranello.
The Finn was the last man to win a world title in a Ferrari and is unlikely to accept being second in command as willingly as Felipe Massa has in recent years.
Ecclestone admits it could become a sticky situation and believes that the team need to produce a car capable of winning the championship otherwise Alonso could lose interest.
“People think the name Ferrari is enough to win, but… I don’t know if the problem is Ferrari or Alonso,” he told Marca. “I hope he hasn’t lost any of the enthusiasm he had. The problem is if he doesn’t believe the team can give him the car he wants, he’ll lose his enthusiasm.”
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